Stepfon Posted Tuesday at 11:09 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:09 PM The success of Disney Channel was kind of an accident. The halcyon days of the mid-2000s ushered in "High School Musical," and the reach of "Hannah Montana" permeated pop culture beyond the tween audience it targeted. But before that, the Disney Channel was bumbling along since its launch in 1983, mostly broadcasting kids cartoons that harked back to the company's animation renaissance in the early 1990s. It wasn't until "Lizzie McGuire," which starred Hilary Duff in the title role, that network executives realized what they had on their hands. "Hilary and Lizzie were really what changed and shaped what came later with Miley and Selena and Demi," says Ashley Spencer, author of "Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel's Tween Empire" — out now. Duff's star power was undeniable, and the slightly aged-up — at least from the Saturday morning cartoon crowd — tween "Lizzie McGuire" audience hung on her every word. But, as Spencer contends in "Disney High," it was a challenge to mobilize all the disparate Disney departments to capitalize on the show and Duff's appeal. Though the channel paid the price for not signing the stars of "The All New Mickey Mouse Club," including Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera, to Disney record contracts while they were still on the show, Spencer writes, "they weren't thinking like that. Yet." "Once the Disney record labels started cooperating with the Disney TV side and everyone recognized that there's a mutual benefit to cross-promoting talent on both ends, that's when you are starting to get Disney Channel stars who are also putting out record-breaking albums, who are going on concert tours, who are selling so much merchandise," Spencer tells The Times. "That's how it became so ever-present in American society in the mid-2000s. That's when magic happened." Still, "Lizzie McGuire" only lasted for the then-requisite 65 episodes (enough to air reruns every weekday in 13-week scheduling blocks to fill out the calendar year), and while they did manage to harness the show's success into the 2003 movie spinoff that still resonates today (most recently namechecked in the Rome sojourn in the new season of Netflix's "Emily in Paris"), Duff's fame and demand grew outside of Disney. "The lesson that Disney Channel took from the show's unprecedented success wasn't that the network needed more single-camera, low-stakes comedies," Spencer writes, "it was that it needed more stars. A marketable, beloved star like Hilary was the key that could unlock movie franchises, record deals and merchandising opportunities across the Disney landscape and bolster the Disney Channel brand on a whole new level. They were starting to see the future." Disney Channel's rise and fall explored in book 'Disney High' - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taylamour Posted Tuesday at 11:18 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:18 PM #ImWithHer #TeamHilary #ButHerEmails 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subzero Posted Tuesday at 11:33 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:33 PM The blueprint 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted Tuesday at 11:44 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:44 PM Some pop girls have yet to outdo Metamorphosis in terms of sales or cultural impact 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimmo Posted Tuesday at 11:54 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:54 PM The lies, we all know who really CHANGED the Disney Chanel… 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
getback Posted Tuesday at 11:57 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:57 PM that's MOTHER 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livelikemusic Posted Wednesday at 12:11 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 12:11 AM Yassss. And I'm dying to know what Alexz Johnson said in the book, too. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gab00 Posted Wednesday at 12:16 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 12:16 AM And then y'all let sparks flop 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V$. Posted Wednesday at 12:23 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 12:23 AM Queen! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xtina23 Posted Wednesday at 12:56 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 12:56 AM #LEGEND Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
50thStateofMind Posted Wednesday at 12:57 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 12:57 AM Queen of disney Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cherish Posted Wednesday at 01:24 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 01:24 AM Now if only she cared about her music like she does her acting. I'm pretty sure Hilary could've easily come up with a song by herself in less than 3 hours. Meanwhile, being on the set all day and she said she was worried about Luca smh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cherish Posted Wednesday at 01:26 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 01:26 AM 1 hour ago, livelikemusic said: Yassss. And I'm dying to know what Alexz Johnson said in the book, too. She's not Disney though really besides So Weird for one season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CristianGarcia Posted Wednesday at 01:59 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 01:59 AM Hilary was a great actress but as a pop star she was a deer in headlights… 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoOneDiesFromLove Posted Wednesday at 02:31 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 02:31 AM We owe her everything Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YourFavoriteWeapon Posted Wednesday at 02:46 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 02:46 AM 2 hours ago, livelikemusic said: Yassss. And I'm dying to know what Alexz Johnson said in the book, too. Canadian icon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livelikemusic Posted Wednesday at 02:52 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 02:52 AM 1 hour ago, Cherish said: She's not Disney though really besides So Weird for one season? Nope. But she stated she was offered that Disney contract a-la Hilary, and turned it down. I'm just wondering what she said in the book. 5 minutes ago, YourFavoriteWeapon said: Canadian icon AMAZING!!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorjesspazze9 Posted Wednesday at 03:19 AM Share Posted Wednesday at 03:19 AM Let Em' Know Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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